IGPX V2
by E. Sheep
Summary: Coached by the legendary Cunningham Hume, Team Suzaku is the up and coming team in the 2060 IGPX season. Joshua Noa was their chief mechanic but is now their new midfielder. Can a rookie pilot like him stand up against the veterans of the IG-1 like Sledge Mamma's River Marque and Satomi's Johnny Lipkin?
1. Chapter 1 - Broken Promise

Chapter 1 – Broken Promise

The IGPX, the Immortal Grand Prix, is the world's most popular motorsport. Two teams of three pilots and their mechs speed down a race track at over 350 miles per hour, battling it out for the checkered flag. IGPX City is the crowning achievement of the sport, an entire city built around the most famous race track of all, the Big Eye. This 60 mile twisting track, suspended high above the ground by steel wire cables, stands in contrast to the corporate skyscrapers of the companies that all earn the livelihoods thanks to the IGPX. It is a true symbol of the modern technological industrial age.

However not everyone is fortunate to live in this utopia of technological achievement. Outside the city limits lies a vast expanse of harsh desert, pocketed by small towns and settlements. Out here is nothing but refuse and waste, leftovers from of the city, both mechanical and human.

"_And River Marque takes the checkered flag! Followed by Johnny Lipkin in second! For the second year in a row, Sledge Mamma takes the 2057 IG-1 championship!_"

The iconic booming voice of Benjamin Bright blared through the speakers of a small television in the corner of an old warehouse. Fifteen year-old Joshua Noa sat at a workbench, tinkering with a now outdated diesel engine he had found in the mountain of junk that lay piled in the center, only listening to the biggest sporting event of the year. He heard the loud sound of creaking metal as the side entrance opened. "Is that you Grandpa? Where've you been? You went out to get food over an hour ago!" he shouted without lifting his shaggy, brown haired head away from his work.

"Sorry, I didn't bring any food, but I'd like to talk to you all the same." He heard that voice before in interviews and press conferences. There was no mistaking the voice Cunningham Hume, former forward of Team Velshtein, three time MVP, and IGPX champion. Joshua opened his mouth to say something but instead of words, an unintelligible mumble dribbled out. His eyes wandered towards the floor. "You must be Joshua Noa. You probably already know this, but my name is Alexander Hume. You can call me Cunningham." The ace pilot once known as the Ghost offered his hand, "I'm putting a team together. How would you like to be a part of it?"

—

Two Years Later

"_We're in the final moments of the last IG-2 race this season, people, and Team Suzaku has a substantial lead!_"

From the stands the cheering crowd can already see three mechs coming down the homestretch, bright sunlight glistening against their green and silver plating.

"_Team Suzaku takes the checkered flag! This will be Suzaku's second championship in a row and will bump them up to the IG-1 next season, pretty impressive for a rookie team that came out of seemingly nowhere just last yea—Hold on! What's this? It looks like a fight's broken out on the track between the two team forwards! While they sort that out, let's take a look at the history of Team Suzaku."_

Many hopeful teams compete in the IGPX, all of them start out in the IG-3, and the rookies of Team Suzaku are no different. What made them the team to watch though was the news that their coach was the legendary Cunningham Hume, a.k.a. the Ghost, who retired from the IGPX when Velshtein disbanded in 2055. They blasted through the IG-3 last year, winning every one of their races, and just now did it again this year in the IG-2.

"_It seems whatever problems they had down there have been sorted out. Now, let's go to the winner's circle!_

All members of Team Suzaku, sans forward, stood awkwardly on the winner's circle amidst flashing cameras and clamoring journalists after the incident out on the track just moments ago. The exceptions were the beaming owner, and the politely smiling Cunningham. "We just heard that your forward was disqualified for disorderly conduct," a reporter called out, "Any comments on how this will affect your performance next year in the IG-1."

"He has always been a bit of a hot head but his conduct out on the track today was clearly inappropriate, and we will accept the decision that has been passed down. Nevertheless he was a talented pilot who will be hard to replace," answered Cunningham.

"But it won't be a problem," Michelle interjected, "Every member of our team, from the pilots to the mechanics, is a talented individual handpicked by the Ghost himself, and he'll definitely come through again. Watch out IG-1, because here we come!"

—

A small after party was held back at Suzaku's headquarters that evening. Along with the team, Michelle had also inherited the old facilities from her late uncle, Tom Suzaku, a smalltime entrepreneur and lifelong fan of the IGPX. Initially the place was in heavy disrepair, having not been used in over twenty years. Luckily for her Cunningham fronted the money to refurbish everything, but they were still underfunded and underequipped compared to IG-1 veterans like Sledge Mamma and Satomi. They were no doubt this year's underdogs. That's what she was counting on.

Cunningham was already in the meeting room with the rest of the team. As Michelle stepped in, Cunningham clapped his hands together and began. "Now that everyone's here, let's get started. First thing's first, congratulations on getting into the IG-1. It's what we've been working towards for the past two years, and Ms. Suzaku and I are very proud of all of your hard work, but it's not over yet. Our goal is to win it all!" The room erupted into an uneasy applause. "I was expecting a little more enthusiasm. I know what you're all thinking about, which is my next point. The most important thing we have to do right now is find a replacement pilot as soon as possible, but that's something for Ms. Suzaku and me to take care of, not you guys, so try to enjoy yourselves." The cheering this time was noticeably louder.

Mixed in amongst the small, celebrating crowd was Joshua Noa, holding a drink and smiling politely at anyone who looked his way. "Hey, thanks for all your hard work." Joshua was talking to Suzaku's midfielder Amanda Fox, in her white and green team jacket, and sitting her wheelchair.

"Yeah, no, just doing my job," Joshua mumbled back.

"No, really. If wasn't for your modifications to the standard controls I wouldn't even be out there. I owe you a lot you know."

"It's nothing really."

"Hey, come here bit," asked Amanda, motioning towards herself. Unsure of what to do, Joshua bent down closer, and was treated to a hearty and very hard slap on the back. "I'm giving you a compliment here, the least you can do is take credit where credit is do. Have a little more pride in yourself, yeah?"

"Then you're welcome?"

"You know, no one would guess that a mouse like you was actually the crew chief." Joshua shrugged.

An hour later, the festivities were over and most of the people had left. Joshua, having stayed behind to tidy up, was the only one in the now quiet meeting room, though maybe staying behind wasn't the most accurate way to describe it. He lived here. Not here exactly but at Team Suzaku's headquarters. Due to his circumstances a room was set aside during the refurbishing period for him to stay in. After all IGPX City was a long way from home. He didn't mind living in the facility though, he loved being around the mechs, and getting to work on them was a dream come true.

From behind he heard the hiss of the automatic doors of the meeting room opening. A toneless, steady voice asked him, "Do you need any help?" Standing in the doorway was, Kari Isabel, with her short, bright green hair and team jacket tied around her waist. She was the only one on Suzaku who had a smaller voice than Joshua.

"Nah, I'm just about done," said Joshua, tying up the last trash bag. "Where were you? You missed out on all the fun."

"Around."

"Oh. Well, alright. So what are you still doing here? Everyone left already."

"Ms. Suzaku usually takes me back."

"She's still here?"

"She's talking with Cunningham in her office. I was told to come get you."

"Do you know why?" Kari shook her head.

It's been about two years since that fateful day when Cunningham came to his rundown home where he lived with his grandfather.

On the day he left, he and his grandfather had their last conversation together. "Josh, there's something I want to tell you. When I was a young man, just starting out, I had dreams. I wanted to make it big as an engineer, to make lots of money and move to a big city, but unfortunately reality never quite meets expectations. Things didn't go as planned and I eventually settled down, got married, and became content. I came to believe that those dreams were just the foolish fancies of youth.

"It was when we had your mother that I realized that I wasn't wrong to strive for something better. In fact I needed to in order to provide a better life for my family, so that my children would have not only the opportunity to dream as I once did, but to dream even bigger. I promised myself that I would work even harder so that we could one day leave this backwater town.

"But once again it just wasn't meant to be. Time continued to move forward, your mother grew up and had you. One day I lost your grandmother, and then your mother. I grew tired and resentful about not being able to keep my promise, until today. You are the only family I have left, and at the very least you will be able to move on to bigger and better things."

"But grandpa, I'm already happy here, I don't need anything else. You're the one who should go, you're a much better mechanic, and you deserve it," said Joshua.

"No, Josh, I've taught you everything I know. I may be better than you now but that's because I'm old. I've got lots of experience, experience that you'll acquire with time. You've got much more talent than I do and a lifetime to get even better. Me on the other hand, I'm just about at the end of my rope. Besides me and long distance travel haven't been on speaking terms for a quite a while.

"My lifetime of hard work has been for one thing, to give you the opportunities I didn't have. Don't be afraid to take advantage of opportunity when it presents itself."

A year later I received the news that he passed away. His last words to me had been "A boy has the right to dream."

A warm glow from the crack under the door of Ms. Suzaku's office seeped into the darkened hallway. Standing just outside, Joshua could make out a little bit of the ongoing conversation.

"So you agree that Amanda should be the new forward?" said the voice that belonged to Cunningham.

"That's not a problem. What I'm not sure about is who you think should replace her." That sounded like Ms. Suzaku. "He's never piloted a mech in his life."

"He knows them inside and out."

"But still."

"Well, why don't we ask him what he thinks?" The automatic door opened to reveal a surprised Joshua. "Come on in," invited Cunningham, "we were just talking about you."

—

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the opening ceremonies of the 2060 IGPX season!" announced Benjamin Bright, standing on the center of the stage, with a spotlight shining down. If you couldn't see him, you could definitely hear Bright's loud voice, but he was definitely hard to miss, despite his short stature, in his bold purple suit and orange bowtie. "Without further ado, let's start by introducing the defending champions, Team Sledge Mamma! Please put your hands together for the twins Duo and Trey, and forward, River Marque!" The spotlight illuminated the three pilots, standing in front of a display of Sledge Mamma's black and blue mechs. "You guys have been champions four years in a row now, any words for your competitors this year, River?" Bright held out the microphone towards River, who stepped up, leaned forward, and spoke.

"I'd like to say good luck to everyone. You're going to need it to go up against us." Whether it was because of his bold confidence of charming good lucks, the audience went wild, especially the women in attendance.

"Bold words from the defending champs," continued Bright, walking along the stage. "Next we have Team Satomi! Rei Nakamura, Andrew Kelly, and Johnny Lipkin!" Team Satomi is a name recognized by anyone who calls themselves a fan of the IGPX. From their early rise to the top, and their fall from grace five years ago, the team has gone through the most changes of any team in the IGPX.

"From France, we have Team Cyclone! Bart Contador, Felix Gimondi, and Andre Hinault! Their tight formations netted them third place last year.

"Now for a team you're all guaranteed to have heard of, Team Hard Wok! Lily Ye, Peter Zhi, and Alan Lee!" The middle pilot, a tall woman wearing a yellow and red, silk _qipao_ walked up and grabbed the microphone out of Bright's hand.

She managed to get out a quick, "Thank you to everyone who came out to support us, and remember to eat at Hard Wok!" before Bright grabbed the microphone back. The audience laughed.

"Please, Ms. Ye, we talked about this last year. Next is the all female team, Nightingale! Peggy Luna, Doreen Dickinson, and a new draft this year, the mysterious," Bright lowered his voice to an uncharacteristic dramatic whisper, "Sotto Voce." Sure enough in between the two tall women on either side stood a shorter girl with long dark hair in an elegant purple evening gown and a pair of stylish, heavy duty sunglasses.

"And finally, this year's rookies. They've been the talk of the town for the way they've blown through the IG-3 and the IG-2 in just two short years after joining the IGPX, Team Suzaku! They had some trouble at the end of last season due to losing a pilot but it seems they've got their lineup all sorted out. Introducing forward Amanda Fox, defender Kari Isabel, and their brand new midfielder, Joshua Noa!"

* * *

**Author's Note**

As I continue to update at a very irregular pace, there may be certain plot points that will need clarification and so at the end of every chapter there'll typically be an author's note where I'll explain things I'm unable to smooth explain fully in the story itself. Also if people actually care enough I would love to talk about the various inspirations for the new characters.

So to start off, this is basically my version of a third IGPX series. To help me get into the mood of writing this out and give it that IGPX feel, I put together a pseudo-soundtrack. So to start off, what's an anime without an opening and ending theme.

OP: "Confidence Drive" – LiSA  
ED: "Movin' On" – SPYAIR

And what's IGPX with some background music from Ninja Tune. For this chapter it's:

"Time and Space" – Cinematic Orchestra  
"Big Lost" – Diplo  
"Count Your Blessings" – Hint  
"Mr. Chombee Has The Flaw" – The Herbaliser (For opening ceremonies, was also used in the original series for the same event)


	2. Chapter 2 - Upset

Chapter 2 – Upset

In the control room situated above the racetrack, Cunningham watched over the status of the mechs. "Alright guys," said Cunningham, speaking into a headset, "You're good to go, head on out to the starting line."

Suzaku's mechs were in fact older models of Velshtein mechs that Cunningham managed to track down. It was thanks to Joshua's hardwork and Cunningham's pocketbook that the mechs were not only refurbished but upgraded to stay competitive with modern IG-machines. The overall design was made more compact, removing some of the bulkier shoulder pieces, slimming down the back, and reinforcing the armor on the limbs. Each mech still retained the capability to glide for short distances, a feature that was unique to team Velshtein. Two of the biggest modifications made were to the controls of the mech Amanda piloted so she would have full control of her mech despite not being able to operate foot pedals, and the power source. A new regulation was put into place five years ago that required all IG-machines to be powered by a hyper compact electric battery rather than relying fossil fuels, in an effort to show that the IGPX supported the global effort for a more environmentally conscious society.

One by one the green and silver mechs of Suzaku walked towards the exit of the hangar, first Amanda, then Kari, and finally Joshua. Inside the dark confines of the IG mech's cockpit, illuminated only by the yellow glow of the heads up display, Joshua was trying his best not to have a heart attack. This was it. This was the real deal. Just calm down. Breathe. No, this was too much. Not only was this his first time in a real race, it was his first time in a mech ever, and he was going up against the IG-1 defending champions, Sledge Mamma. "Hey, stop breathing so loudly," demanded Amanda's voice over the intercom, "I know this is your first race but please, try to keep yourself together. Remember Cunningham put you on the team for a reason."

Another, calmer voice followed, it was Kari. "I agree. Despite your inexperience, your simulator scores are on par with ours." It was true. While he had never piloted the mechs, he used the simulators regularly to test any adjustments made to the equipment, usually after hours when no one was around. Cunningham must've noticed and asked him to be a last minute replacement. The girls were right. "Okay," he told himself, "Just gotta keep it toge- Whoa!" He lost balance of his mech and stumbled forward, crashing into Kari's ahead of him. The mechanical crew watching from the ground winched in unison. Michelle's loud sigh from the control room was audible through the intercom.

"Oh man, I'm so sorry. Are you alright?"

"I am fine," replied Kari, unfazed.

"Hey, careful back there!" scolded Amanda.

"_Here we are folks, this is the first race of season and what a matchup it is! The defending champs, Sledge Mamma, versus the rookies of Team Suzaku! If this seems like this is going to be a one-sided race, think again, word on the street is that Suzaku's coach is none other than Cunningham Hume, the legendary Ghost himself!_

Once he took his place in line, Joshua looked directly across to his side to the Sledge Mamma machine positioned across from him. Its design and paint job harkened back to an age of roaring motors and muscle machines. They were known for their straight forward and highly aggressive racing style, preferring to win by beating the other team into submission rather than by winning the race, a strategy that's proven its effectiveness by winning them the championship for the past four years. Joshua began to feel a strange anxiousness. When he was younger Joshua would often get picked on by bullies. That feeling he got when the larger or older kid stood over him, the expectation of a punch to the face or a knee to the gut, the terrible anticipation of pain, he was getting it again. Sledge Mamma's midfielder apparently noticed him looking because the mech turned around briefly, raising it's right arm up to where eyes would be on the mech if it had eyes and made a rude gesture.

"_And here's the countdown!"_

5

4

3

2

1

And they were off.

—

It was the late afternoon and the setting sun bathed the IGPX City in a warm, orange light. During this time in-between night and day, few people were out. It was too late for daytime activities and too early for night life. The park was virtually empty except for Joshua, who sat quietly on a park bench, with earphones stuffed into his head and music blaring from his MP3 player. He was listening to Yui Yoshiko, a singer who was the current big thing. Posters of her were all over the city and rumor had it that she was going to come to IGPX City soon. While he was a fan of hers, both for her songs and her triumphant personal story of finding stardom despite coming from the slums like Joshua, at the moment none of that mattered. What was important was the volume, which was cranked up to the highest setting. He wanted to drown out everything, his embarrassment at his performance, his incompetence as a pilot, his failure as a teammate, in a wave of sound. That's why he didn't notice at first that a little girl was talking to him.

"-seem sad, mister," was what he managed to catch of what she said as he pulled out his earphones. "If you ate something good it might make you feel better, come on." She motioned for him to follow but when Joshua didn't she came back to pull him by his arm. Relenting, Joshua followed her through the park to a hotdog truck. "Best hotdog in the city," the girl said. A man stuck head out of a service window on the side of the truck.

"Rosemary," said who Joshua guessed was the owner of the truck to the girl, "what did I tell you about bothering strangers?" He then turned his bearded face to Joshua. "I hope she didn't cause you any trouble. She's not exaggerating though. Best hotdog in the city."

"I could eat," said Joshua.

"Well then, because you're a new face, here's one on the house." Joshua thanked him as he took the hotdog and started to eat. "You know, you look familiar. I think I saw you on TV before. You a pilot? Were you in the race"

"Yeah," replied Joshua after a pause.

"Suzaku right?"

Joshua responded with another, "Yeah," though after a much longer pause.

The owner of the hotdog truck laughed. "Well congratulations kid, you guys did good out there for a bunch of rookies."

"I was the midfielder."

"Oh," he stopped laughing, but still smiled. "You're the last minute replacement right? I read that it was your first time out there on the track. You did pretty good, holding out as long as you did against Sledge Mamma, those guys are vicious." Inside Joshua knew it was true that the odds were stacked against him, that it wasn't anything to be ashamed of to have been taken out almost immediately after the start of the second lap when he was a complete rookie going up against the reigning champions. He didn't feel bad about that, not really. What he was brooding over was being dead weight, holding back his teammates with his lack of skill. "Hey, cheer up, kid. You guys won right?"

—

"_Holy Toledo, people, what an upset! Amanda Fox of Suzaku takes first place! Following are the River and Duo of Sledge Mamma and Kari Isabel comes in fourth. The rookies of Team Suzaku just beat the reigning champions in the first race of the season! Folks, if this race is anything to go by, I have a feeling this will probably the most exciting IG-1 season in a long time."_

Later on people would remember this moment as the start of something big. After four years of winning the championship, Sledge Mamma had built up a solid racing dynasty that no one seemed to be able to challenge. It was impressive, yes, but it was also boring to have Sledge Mamma win year after year. This one moment of David toppling Goliath signaled that it was now anyone's game. Joshua heard Bright's declaration of Suzaku's victory over the radio while sitting in the crumpled heap that was his mech.

A girl clad in a dark blue pilot suit climbed out of the similarly disabled midfielder machine of Sledge Mamma. As the three veteran pilots of Sledge Mamma were busy triple-teaming the weakest link, Kari had somehow managed to slip by and take out their midfielder. Amanda slipped through the chaos that followed and took the lead. The girl whom Joshua presumed was Trey, looked in his direction as she took off her helmet, revealing two light brown pigtails. She then repeated the same rude gesture shown to him by the mech at the start of the race before walking off. At the very least, Joshua had thought, since he was taken out so quickly at the start of the second lap, it wasn't too long a walk back to the starting point.

—

In a private box up above the race track, Michelle Suzaku had watched the race with the wealthy man who owned it. Cunningham was the one who usually took charge during races, they wouldn't have missed her. It was well after the race now but she stayed behind to talk business. "Well, Ms. Suzaku, I must say I am very impressed with your team's performance," said the man, his smooth, practiced voice in a tone that was slightly condescending. Michelle did her best to flash a smile through the annoyance that she felt.

"Then we have a deal?"

"No." It was suddenly harder for Michelle to hold the smile.

"I heard you were a betting man, Mr. Meto, you're not afraid of a little risk are you?" prodded Michelle.

"I do a little here and there, and that's why I'm not willing to make a move just yet. A good gambler doesn't count on lady luck, he waits and watches, gathering information and analyzing the situation in order to minimize risk, and that's what I think I'll do for now."

—

In the meeting room, Amanda celebrated her victory with the rest of Team Suzaku. "You were amazing out there!" "Those were some great moves!" "You really showed them." "The IG-1 better watch out!" All afternoon she had been hearing those types of comments and it felt good. Sure, she liked the rush that surged through her body and mind during a race, it was exciting, but what she really loved was the warmth of basking in the winner's spotlight. She liked getting praised, not that she ever let it get to her head. At least, she tried not to.

On the television hanging from the ceiling in the corner of the room, the sports talk show hosted by Benjamin Bright was on. Currently they were cutting away to a message from Sledge Mamma. The visage of the always cool River Marque was currently on, standing against a background of weight lifting equipment in Sledge Mamma's headquarters and a towel hanging over his shoulder. "Well Benjamin, what can I say, after four championships we've gotten a little sloppy. Put on a little weight, figuratively speaking of course." Of course. The purple athletic shirt he wore showed off his well-toned arms. Like all IGPX pilots, he worked out regularly. "Still, you got to give credit where credit's due. Suzaku ran a great race out there today, especially that Amanda Fox." That was it. That set her over the top. River Marque, the River Marque, just complimented her. On television. Right now.

"Hey, you know where Joshua is?" she heard, snapping her out of her elation. It was Cunningham.

"Oh, I don't know. He went out for a walk after the race I think."

"He seemed pretty down."

"What? Why? We won didn't we?"

"The team did, but he didn't. It was his first race, and in the IG-1 at that. He had it pretty rough out there."

"He'll get over it. Besides, I'm good enough to cover for him, we'll be fine. We already beat the champs, the rest'll be small fry compared to Sledge Mamma." At that, Cunningham's usually friendly face turned stern.

"Don't relax just yet. You're race today sent a message out to the other teams. You guys are the ones they'll be gunning for now. Every team we race from now on will be going all out."

"Right, I got it, don't worry about it." Amanda grinned at Cunningham, whose cheerful expression still hadn't returned.

* * *

**Author's Note**

Okay so here's the second chapter. Now if anyone is reading this, you may have noticed the order of events isn't necessarily chronological. That's something I wanted to try carrying over from anime, both the two season one and the microseries. If you'll remember, the biggest example was when they cut away in the middle of the race against Sledge Mamma, only to have you find out the results later. It's a presentation that I've tried to recreate here as an experiment, though it might not be the best way to present a story in writing.

As for the soundtrack, this time we have

"Verbal (Live)" – Amon Tobin  
"Going Down" – Funki Porcini


End file.
